Cypselus

Kypselos (Greek Κύψελος, Latin: Cypselus ) was a tyrant of Corinth in the 7th century BC.

The prophecy

Kypselos was a respected and wealthy family in Corinth. His father Eetion led his family tree back to a mythical figure, the Lapiths Kaineus as ancestor. Eetion married the Labda paralyzed from the family of Bakchiads, only this family then presented the Prytanes, the top official in Corinth. When the marriage remained childless, to Aetion turned to the oracle at Delphi. He was told ahead of a descendant, of the heads of Corinth should be terrible. Therefore decided to Bakchiads to kill the child.

The box of Cypselus

As Kypselos was born, a delegation went to the house of the Eetion. They asked Labda to show them her son. Labda who suspected nothing, the first Kypselos was on his arm. Since this is not contrived to kill the baby, he handed it on to the next. But none of the delegation was able to commit the crime and so they left the house empty-handed. At the door they made each other allegations. Now they forcibly entered the house and were determined to kill Kypselos. But Labda had overheard everything and therefore had the newborn child hidden in a box, so it was not found and could thus survive. As in Corinth at that time a box was called kypsele ( κυψέλη ), the child was given the name Kypselos. The box that the descendants of Cypselus laid down later in the Temple of Hera in Olympia as a votive offering, where he still at the end of the second century was AD, consisted of cedar with carving and inlaid figures and was regarded in antiquity as an exquisite work of art. The inscription on the box was attributed to Eumelus in ancient Corinth.

Government

As Kypselos grew up, he drove the Bakchiads and took about 657/656 BC the rule. Kypselos thus ending the two hundred seventy -year reign of Bakchiads. He was violent and exiled, dispossessed and killed many of the Corinthians. He amassed great wealth, and consecrated a golden Zeusstandbild for the temple at Olympia. After 28 years of rule he died and bequeathed the reign of his son Periander, whom he fathered with his wife Kratea. Strabo even mentions another son Gorgos.

Well to 584/483 BC, the rule of Kypseliden was replaced by the Spartans.

Comments

Swell

• Lyra graeca, Terpander.
• Herodotus, Histories, 1, 14; 1, 20; 1, 23; 3, 48; 5, 92-95; 6, 128
• Parthenius of Nicaea, 17
• Pausanias, traveling in Greece, 1, 23, 1; 2, 4, 4; 2, 28, 8; 5, 2, 3; 5, 17, 5; 5, 18, 7; 10, 24, 1
• Strabo, Geographica, 325; 353; 378; 452

• Tyrant
• Greek ( Ancient )
• Born in the 7th century BC
• Died in the 7th century BC
• Man